Month: March 2019

You've worked hard to get where you are. You are a much better developer than when you started, back in the dark ages where we didn't have these easy tools that the "kids who think they are so clever" do now. You've paid your dues. Why on earth should you accept less money on a new job that your last?
Well, in a perfect world you shouldn't. In the real world, we are faced with the reality of some middle managers who do not understand tech, always under pressure to cut expenses, and like the newest buzz words of the month that they see on the CVs of the younger cheaper hires.
Economics lessons from the road
The Celestial Circus
I learned a valuable lesson in career economics, far from the tech world and a full 20 years before I set foot in Silicon Valley for the first time. At ...

My favourite part of coding without a doubt is going deep into my head and thoughts, into what I call "The Zone". It is a state that most programmers will be familiar with. You are one with the code. Thinking is sharp and time productive.
The Art of Code
Being primarily a game developer, I've worked closely with artists over the years. Sometimes I've worked with a huge team of artists. One day I overheard a conversation from one of that team, "We should make the decision, because it is a creative one, and we do the creative work here."
There is no doubt that producing beautiful images from nothing but the imagination is creative. No one disputes that it is art. What about code? Is code art?
What is art?
Asking Google to "define art" it came up with:
The expression or a...

Lately, in my work, I've seen a lot of beautifully designed websites, shops, and apps. However a majority of them are lacking a major component. TEXT!
They aren't going to read it anyway!
When I see posts on Reddit asking for a review of a shop, the poster almost always asking "How does it look?". If I mention the text, or lack thereof often I'm rebuked with "They aren't going to read it anyway!".
It seems to be a fairly common misconception that intelligence is being drained away by the internet and people have all but given up reading in favor of digesting YouTube videos.
The myth is further perpetuated by TL;DR tags. This is in reality just a good way to give a site visitor a summary of the longer text.
People do Read!
How do I know people still read?
You are rea...

My nephew became a Buddhist monk this last week and it got me thinking of one of my favorite books. THE HOLY MAN by Susan Trott. I won’t give away the story in case you want to read it, and you SHOULD read it. In the book, there is a quote:
“If you treat everyone you meet as a holy man you will be happy.” From The Holy Man, by Susan Trott
What would happen?
You may or may not have a lot of monks where you live, but you may have seen how people will defer to a minister, rabbi, cleric or priest. What would happen if we did treat all people like that?
Think about a celebrity. Think about your favorite marketing guru, singer, actor, comedian or author? Now picture yourself talking to them. What would you say? What would you hope they would say back?
What if you are the cel

In a world of multitasking and increased responsibilities, you might be surprised to learn you have just one job. Whether you are a manager software developer, teacher, politician, or underwater basket weaver you have one job. No matter how many times you change careers, You have one job.
That job is to make people happy.
Making people happy leads to success. Making customers happy brings more business. Making your boss happy leads to promotion. Making your spouse happy leads to a happier life at home.
Choices
With so many people to keep happy of course, it's impossible to keep everyone happy at the same time. That is one of the problems that we have to navigate in life. It can be tough to decide who to make happy and whom we must disappoint.
If it ever comes down to an i...

I have spent a lot of years making games and don't get me wrong I am going to continue to make a lot of games and increase the frequency of up my game making and sharing that in my social media.
Collecting Dust
For years I've had projects collecting dust First they collected dust in my brain as ideas. I struggled with the fear of actually making the projects.
Then I struggled with actually shipping these projects opening up to the public view. Finally, I got over that fear.
What I have always struggled with and still struggle with today is the fear of promoting myself. Not because I didn't think my content was good but because I was brought up to believe any self-promotion was a sign of an unhealthy ego.
Why I am leaving my comfort zone?
As I get older I increasingly s...